The present invention relates to an air introduction body, and more particularly to a vehicle air cleaner having an in-line resonator.
Manufacturers have employed various methods to reduce engine noise within a vehicle passenger compartment. Such noise frequently emanates from the engine, travels through the air induction system, and emanates into the passenger compartment.
Typically, a resonator chamber device communicates with the air induction system in order to reduce engine noise. The resonator device is mounted perpendicular to a vehicle induction system flow conduit. The resonator requires additional packaging space which may be at a premium in some vehicle installations.
Resonator devices include both expansion chamber and Helmholtz resonators which are designed to attenuate noise in particular frequency ranges. In an effort to simplify the air induction system and lower costs, the air cleaner sometimes includes a resonator chamber in the housing into which the air cleaner element is installed. Even where a resonator is integrated into an air cleaner housing, the resonator device comprises a separate component which must be connected into the induction system typically using hoses and clamps or otherwise requires a rather complicated communication path to achieve the perpendicular orientation.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide an effective resonator system which requires minimum packaging space for utilization in relatively small locations.
The air cleaner assembly according to the present invention provides a housing constructed from a cover and a base. A filter such as a planar air filter is located within the housing between an air inlet and outlet thereby filtering airflow therebetween. The air inlet extends from the housing to communicate with an air intake port typically located at a vehicle location where fresh air is available.
A resonator device such as a Helmholtz device is mounted within the housing. The resonator device includes a resonator volume and a tuning neck. The resonator volume fits into the housing to reduce bulk and readily lend itself to adaptation to the space requirements. The tuning neck is mounted within and along an axis defined by the outlet. As the tuning neck is mounted within the outlet, noise and vibration are communicated directly to the resonator device to attenuate vehicle noise and vibrations without impacting the system packaging space. Moreover, no external connections are required to mount the resonator device into the air introduction system as heretofore required.
The present invention therefore provide an effective resonator system which requires minimum packaging space for utilization in relatively small locations.